"They actually took out so many blue-grade scene materials in one go, the provincial association must have bled a lot."

 

Chronicle mused to himself.

 

Although these items were quoted at only a few hundred thousand each on the market, due to high demand and limited supply, they often fetched several million at the "Ghost Market."

 

In other words, what lay before him were not just some shiny, nice-looking little cards, but the equivalent of dozens of C-class sedans or a small city building that couldn't be driven away.

 

"Take your time choosing," Wang Yan said from the side.

 

Chronicle nodded slightly, his hand supporting him as he skimmed over the materials, eventually picking out the 【Dance Pavilion and Singing Stage】 scene material.

 

To be honest, in terms of the name and the image on the card, this one was quite a bit less imposing than the likes of 【Blood Bun at the Vegetable Market】 or 【Filthy Organ Temple】, to name a few.

 

However, the competition required that the cards crafted in the next two rounds had to match the style of the prepared field cards and be able to serve as plug-ins.

 

This made options like "Evil Monk Temple" and "Demon Taoist Temple" unsuitable.

 

【Red and White Collision】 was about the clash of wedding and funeral, with no room for elements like Buddha, Tao, soldiers, or scholars, forming its own unique underworld faction.

 

"Dance Pavilion and Singing Stage…"

 

The naming style of this material was somewhat similar to the 【Withered Grass and Dead Willow】 that Xie Wenyuan had given him.

 

Looking at the card image, it was a grand theater scene with blazing fires and splendid flowers, where lords and ladies, young masters and misses gathered, toasting and laughing merrily.

 

Yet beneath the lofty stage, there were beggars with gaunt faces and dirt-streaked cheeks, and white bones buried in the earth.

 

Wealthy homes reeked of meat and wine while bones of the frozen dead littered the roads.

 

This card might be less imposing than other materials in terms of ghostly aura, but it excelled in its profound meaning.

 

"【Withered Grass and Dead Vines】, 【Dance Pavilion and Singing Stage】…"

 

"Flowers in full bloom, oil boiling over fire… Grand View Garden."

 

Chronicle clenched the material in his hand, lines of exquisitely emotional text and sigh-inducing judgments involuntarily flashing through his mind.

 

Dream of the Red Chamber…

 

The Dark Grand View Garden…

 

This was the domain card he had long wanted to create.

 

It was just that the female ghost materials he had obtained from 【Flower Girl School】 had all been sold to create 【General Zeng】.

 

Without stock in hand, he had to delay until now.

 

But now, seeing 【Dance Pavilion and Singing Stage】, he immediately picked up the idea again.

 

"Grand View Garden…"

 

"As the fortress of love in the Red Chamber and the spiritual home of the 【Righteous and Evil Assignments】, it has considerable mythological and legendary significance. As an initial domain card, it's definitely sufficient."

 

"At the same time, as the dwelling of a group of 'mortals', even if these lovesick men and women are reincarnations of immortals, they wouldn't possess too high a spirituality. It should be possible to create at the bronze stage."

 

"More importantly, I can use it to practice, so that when I later create the 【Pretending God】 series of domain cards, it will be relatively easy."

 

Chronicle calculated silently and eventually held the card tightly in his hand.

 

"Chose this card?"

 

Wang Yan's eyebrows twitched slightly.

 

However, out of respect for another card craftsman's thoughts and ideas, after pondering for a moment, he said nothing.

 

Then came the choice of modifiable material location information:

 

【Tears of Spirit Grass Essence】, 【Grey-Robed Half-Blind Old Taoist】, 【Red-Robed Demon Monk of Peach County】, 【Flesh Tower Temple Locust Tree Old Demon】, 【Lone Tomb Wind Evil Love Trickery】…

 

Unlike the scene materials which were more or less the same, this row of modifiable materials, although all blue-grade, varied greatly in initial level, skill characteristics, and so on.

 

"I'll choose this one."

 

Chronicle unhesitatingly selected 【Tears of Spirit Grass Essence】.

 

Apart from her overall quality being among the best in this batch of materials, the most important reason for Chronicle's choice was that her original form was very similar to the 【Coral Fruit Immortal Grass】 described by Master Cao.

 

That is, Lin Daiyu's previous life.

 

A plant whose fruit resembled coral beads.

 

"Lin Daiyu…"

 

Chronicle frowned in deep thought.

 

Since this time he was modifying materials rather than creating cards from scratch, like when he created Ying Tai, he didn't need to infuse mythical figures.

 

The selected character only needed to have "legendary" qualities to create a decent card.

 

And Lin Daiyu, as a character known in parallel universes, was the epitome of legendary.

 

And because of legends like "The Pledge of the Stone" and "The Coral Beads Returning Tears," she was not lacking in mythological aspects either.

 

If he could really create it, at least in terms of potential, it would not be weaker than Ying Tai and could serve as a good "system card."

 

However, this was not the main reason why Chronicle chose her.

 

As the old saying goes, think one step ahead, plan a hundred steps ahead.

 

Although Chronicle had not reached that level, thinking one step ahead and planning ten steps ahead was still possible.

 

The 【16 to 8】 competition had not yet started, but he had already thought about the 【4 to 2】 field match semi-finals.

 

"Making a MOD for 【Red and White Collision】…"

 

Chronicle's original idea was to lie in a coffin himself and play the role of 【White Disaster】.

 

Although he was not very willing, he knew better than anyone:

 

Whether from the perspective of being crushed to death by a dump truck and transmigrating, or having participated in Ying Tai's life as "Liang Shanbo," the term 【Died Young】 seemed tailor-made for him.

 

And the position of 【White Disaster】 seemed to be specially designed for him;

 

That square coffin seemed to be specially prepared for him.

 

All those coincidences seemed to be telling him: hurry up and lie down, that coffin is reserved for you.

 

Somewhat helpless, but for the sake of the bigger picture, when it came to the critical moment, he would be the fastest to close the coffin lid.

 

Now, with Lin Mianmian and Grand View Garden, he had a new choice.

 

"In the current version of Dream of the Red Chamber, Miss Lin dies in her teens, which undoubtedly fits the 【Died Young】 profile perfectly."

 

"Although as a reincarnation of an immortal grass, she is ethereal and somewhat discordant with the sharp and thrilling top-tier underworld scene of 【Red and White Collision】, I just need her identity."

 

"On the day of Baochai's wedding, Daiyu's tears run dry, and her soul returns to the void."

 

"A bridal sedan enters the mansion, a thin coffin is carried out for the funeral."

 

"The joy is false, the mourning is real."

 

"The person in the sedan should have been the one in the coffin, a wisp of fragrant soul should have been the bride marrying someone."

 

"Yet absurdly, the cold moon buries the flower soul."

 

Chronicle pondered with a frown, tapping his fingers back and forth on the map of 【Tears of Spirit Grass Essence】.

 

"When the time comes, I'll play Baoyu, Ying Tai in red and white makeup will play Baochai, and Daiyu… will play herself."

 

"With this setting and story, the style is also a match."

 

"I could even tweak it a bit and add Seven Brothers and Eight Brothers to the deck."

 

"After all, in a certain supernatural version of Dream of the Red Chamber, after Daiyu's death, Baoyu dreams of descending into the netherworld and inquires about the 'old friend' from Black and White Impermanence."

 

"This way, my main battle cards can all be integrated into the 【Red and White Collision】 set of field cards, and by then, it would be hard not to win."

 

Of course, this didn't mean he had given up on the idea of being 【White Disaster】 and following the Liang Zhu storyline.

 

To be honest, he was also curious whether lying in the coffin would grant him the resentment boost of "White Disaster," thus giving him some self-protection.

 

"Let's talk about that later, first get this plan in hand."

 

Chronicle thought to himself, putting the map into his bag and couldn't help but smile.

 

"Chosen yet?"

 

Seeing his happy face, Wang Yan couldn't help but speak up.

 

"Yeah, chosen, just these two."

 

Chronicle said earnestly.

 

"No need to rush, as the first place, you can still pick another material map."

 

"However, we are limited by time, so this material can only be captured after the competition is over."

 

"Let me know when you've chosen."

 

As Wang Yan finished speaking, Chronicle unhesitatingly picked up the 【Lone Tomb Wind Evil Love Trickery】 material map, which had a strong Land of Peach style.

 

Normally, if he wanted to "catch ghosts," he could just go home and do it.

 

There's no shortage of that stuff at home.

 

With this opportunity, he could have chosen some other type of material to play with.

 

But the name of this material was quite telling, instantly reminding him of the 【Debauched Evil Ghost】 from the opening of Dream of the Red Chamber.

 

This term comes from the beginning, where the vast Bodhisattva says: When the Jadeite Attendant and the Coral Bead Fairy descend to the mortal world, they will surely stir up a bunch of "debauched evil ghosts to join them through the calamities."

 

Some people have linked this phrase to some of the more terrifying scenes in the original work, deriving the 【Dark Grand View Garden】 theory.

 

And in this theory, everyone else, even Yuan Chun who visits her family in the middle of the night, may not be a ghost, but Baochai, "the most abnormal," must be the "debauched evil ghost" in Grand View Garden.

 

"Then I'll choose her, and when she's made later, she'll be a perfect match for Daiyu."

 

"It will also completely separate the two red and white stories of 【Liang Zhu】 and 【Bao Dai Chai】, so there's no need to bother Ying Tai to play the part later."

 

Chronicle thought to himself, carefully putting away the map.

 

Seeing this, Wang Yan nodded slightly and then asked him to call the next person.

 

In fact, from Uncle Dong's perspective, he should have called Chronicle "Shishu" (junior uncle).

 

This was also the reason for his extra care for Chronicle.

 

To put it bluntly, it was filial piety.

 

"After calling Gao Sheng, you can just leave."

 

He waved his hand.

 

"Yeah."

 

Chronicle nodded, retraced his steps, and after telling Gao Sheng to "go get the materials," he rode the Year Beast and hugged the Mountain Ghost (now this little girl was not sitting still in the car, easily falling off), and headed straight for the temporary hotel.

 

He had a good night's sleep.

 

…

 

The next morning at five o'clock, Chronicle was woken up on time by his biological clock.

 

After a quick wash, he took advantage of the early morning light and the pleasant autumn breeze to practice for a while.

 

Then, accompanied by Ying Tai, he rode the Year Beast to the gathering place.

 

"Chronicle Brother/Old Ji/Year Treasure, good morning."

 

"Morning, morning, morning."

 

Chronicle nodded and waved to the others.

 

"Eh, why does it feel a bit strange?"

 

Chronicle was puzzled and was about to say something.

 

But at this moment, Ying Tai came over and handed him a plastic bag containing soy milk, fried dough sticks, and steamed buns.

 

"Thank you."

 

Chronicle smiled lightly, ruffled the little girl's hair, and started eating breakfast heartily.

 

During this time, with the presence of Year, a "fierce beast" with an excellent appearance.

 

That atmosphere, towering like a ten-story building, also kept those who intended to get close to him from approaching.

 

Chronicle was happy for the peace, and after throwing the plastic bag into a nearby trash can, Wang Yan arrived just in time, riding a donkey.

 

"One, two, three… everyone's here, let's go then."

 

He yawned lazily, gesturing for everyone to follow him.

 

The remaining dozen or so people heard this and hurriedly summoned their mounts, silently following.

 

In this way, they rode through the city on a variety of strange vehicles.

 

After a full two hours, they finally left the city and arrived in the suburbs.

 

Almost the moment they stepped out of the city gate, the endless rolling mountains burst into view.

 

Peaks upon peaks, reaching the clouds.

 

A sea of green, the forest like a vast ocean.

 

Occasionally, when the mountain wind blew, the vast sea of trees covering a hundred thousand mountains would let out a roar like waves.

 

Majestic and grand, vast and magnificent.

 

Since Chronicle's transmigration, the beauty of this world had been conveying one truth to him: the more beautiful, the more dangerous.

 

As one of the largest secret realms in the Nine Provinces, the 【Eastern Land】, connected to several medium and small secret realms including the Land of Peach, this green mountain secret realm was rich in material types.

 

But it was also because of this that it was fraught with danger.

 

To some extent, the Land of Peach was safer.

 

After all, there's only one category of ghosts in the thousand-mile Land of Peach, which is easy to target.

 

But these hundred thousand green mountains encompass almost all the underworld categories you can think of.

 

Mountain demons and corpses, fierce beasts and hawks, plant spirits, poisonous insects and monsters… everything.

 

And as time goes on, with the invasion and fusion of secret realms, its "biodiversity" is still trending upwards.

 

The most fatal thing is that many evil organizations have taken a fancy to its large range and diverse environment, choosing to set up camp here.

 

Today you hit me, tomorrow I hit you.

 

A complete mess.

 

From this perspective, it's actually not suitable for establishing an anchor point.

 

But who can resist the "great scenery mortals" as a strategic resource?

 

"If you think about it, these great scenery mortals are really miserable."

 

"On the Blue Star side, ordinary people are protected by the alliance, and they can still make a world and open space for themselves with their own efforts.""And those ordinary people from the grand scene, not only are they considered 'resources' like chickens and pigs in the eyes of the Blue Star card masters, but they also have to bear the risk of being devoured and refined by the 'grand scene demons.'"

 

"Moreover, living in such a high-risk world as the grand scene, they are constantly facing all sorts of dangers, truly at the very bottom of the food chain…"

 

Even with Chronicle's stoic nature, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of sympathy for them.

 

"If things keep going like this, these 'bugs' in the mouths of the grand scene demons probably won't last until the 'savior' appears; they'll be extinct."

 

"How tragic."

 

Chronicle thought to himself, shaking his head.

 

He squeezed into a transport vehicle's trough, following the crowd.

 

After a bumpy ride, they finally entered the half-withered, half-flourishing, slightly eerie forest at the foot of the mountains.

 

Moments later, he felt the world spinning around him.

 

His body seemed to be torn into pieces by several great forces.

 

A few minutes later, he slowly opened his eyes and heard Wang Yan's voice from the front passenger seat: "Alright, everyone, get off the bus."

 

Hearing this, everyone summoned their spiritual power, forcibly suppressing the headache and dizziness, and helped each other off the bus.

 

The emerald sky, the vast sea of trees, and the continuous mountains instantly filled their view.

 

"Little Chronicle!"

 

A familiar call pulled Chronicle's gaze from the beautiful scenery.

 

He turned his head and saw Su Wen, whom he hadn't seen for a long time, walking towards him.

 

"You're just a little short of advancing to Silver… It seems you haven't slacked off during this time, good, very good."

 

The pale sunlight swept down from the dome, split into countless pieces by the vast sea of trees, and fell on Su Wen's glasses.

 

The warm light flickered slightly, and Su Wen smiled with satisfaction.

 

"It's been a long time since I've seen Uncle Yuan, I've actually missed you."

 

Chronicle naturally assumed the demeanor of a respectful junior: "Have you finished dealing with the backlog of tasks from the unified training, Uncle Yuan?"

 

"Not yet." Su Wen smiled and said, "I'm here today to deal with a document at Qing Shan Town's Yuan Army base. I heard you were here, so I came to check on you. How is it? No problem with the championship, right?"

 

"No big problem." Chronicle replied, having gradually mastered the way of communicating with the other party.

 

"Hahaha."

 

Sure enough, Su Wen laughed with satisfaction upon hearing this: "That's right, what's a little Qing Shan Cup championship? It's nothing if you want to take it."

 

After speaking, he patted Chronicle's shoulder and said, "I've got things to do, so I won't chat more. Go on, let those kids see how formidable we people from the Land of Peach are."

 

"Okay." Chronicle nodded with a smile, "Uncle Yuan, you should also take care of yourself, don't overwork."

 

"Mhm."

 

Su Wen chuckled with interest.

 

This kid was getting more and more slick.

 

That bit of politeness just now made him feel like an old hand who had been mingling in secret realms for years.

 

And it was precisely because of this that he felt even more satisfied and reassured.

 

In these increasingly chaotic times, to be as naive as Zi Liang meant that even with great talent, one wouldn't live well.

 

The best one could hope for was to become the sharpest blade of Blue Star.

 

That was not what they wanted.

 

"I should keep a closer eye in the future. This is our last hope; we can't let Su Wen, Fan Lei, and the others ruin a good seedling."

 

Su Wen thought to himself, coughed lightly, and turned to look towards the distant mountains, his expression somewhat grim.

 

Then he rolled up his shirt sleeve and saw a black line starting from the tip of his left middle finger, following the veins to his elbow, with a tendency to continue spreading.

 

This was the poison of the grand scene tainted with "Immortal Nature."

 

It wasn't just him, who was not very old and whose cultivation wasn't that deep; even someone like Wang Jingdong would suffer a great loss of vitality and lifespan if struck by this.

 

"The resurgence of the 'Immortal' from Qing Shan and Land of Peach, the disturbances of Yun Ding and Tian Tan's 'Dragon Court'… day after day, there's never a moment of peace, and who knows when it will all end."

 

Su Wen thought to himself, wrapping his elbow with a yellow band inscribed with glyphs and dragon patterns, finally stopping the spread of the poison.

 

"Sigh."

 

He looked at Chronicle's retreating figure with a deep sigh, wondering when this promising seedling would grow up.

 

…

 

"Other students, please wait a moment."

 

Wang Yan directed from the side: "Chronicle, you go in first later, find the location marked on the map, seal the materials, and don't stay a moment longer than necessary, come out immediately."

 

"Then Gao Sheng will go in to capture the materials, followed by Yu Anran…"

 

"In this order, once everyone has sealed their chosen materials for transformation, we will all go in together. Based on personal preference and luck, we will seal materials for half a day."

 

The first chapter is released, and after twelve o'clock, there will be a big chapter about making cards related to Daiyu.

 

Then from tomorrow day to night, there will be ten thousand more.

 

The day after tomorrow, there will be another ten thousand.

 

During the promotion period, I hope everyone can give more support.

 

Please and thank you!